AN HONORS eBOOK FROM MASTER POINT PRESS

Patrick Darricades

Optimal
Hand
Evaluation
 Text © 2019 Patrick Darricades
Cover image: 123RF/dolgachov

All rights reserved.

Honors eBooks is an imprint of Master Point Press. All contents, editing and
design (excluding cover design) are the sole responsibility of the authors.

Master Point Press

214 Merton St. Suite 205
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
M4S 1A6
(647) 956-4933

info@masterpointpress.com

www.masterpointpress.com
www.bridgeblogging.com
www.teachbridge.com
www.ebooksbridge.com

ISBN: 978-1-77140-313-9

Cover Design: Olena S. Sullivan/New Mediatrix

123456 22 21 20 19
 OPTIMAL HAND EVALUATION
______________________________________________________________________

TABLE OF CONTENTS

FOREWORD
CHAPTER 1 : GOREN’s point count : First corrections

Ø Assessing current hand evaluation practices Page 1

Ø Corrections to the 4 3 2 1 Honor point count Page 2
Ø Corrections to the 5 3 1 Distribution-Fit count Page 4
Ø The true value of Aces, Queens and Jacks Page 6
Ø Year 1995 : Fit points for 9 or more trumps Page 15
CHAPTER 2 : 2015 : New findings and further corrections

Ø Points for suit length and for short suits Page 19

Ø Combination of honors and the true value of 10s Page 22
Ø The importance of Qs and Ks : point corrections Page 33
Ø 9 + card Fit points for All suits and All contracts ! Page 39
Ø 8-card Fit points for All suits and All contracts ! Page 45
Ø Optimal Hand Evaluation : Illustrations Page 57
CHAPTER 3 : “Wasted honor points” count

Ø “Wasted honor points” opposite short suits Page 61

Ø Misfit points opposite long suits ………..…… Page 66
Ø Misfit points in No Trump ………………...…. Page 71
CHAPTER 4 : Point count in response to partner’s opening

Ø Semi-Fit points ……….………………………… Page 73

Ø Point count in response to a No Trump bid Page 76

 OPTIMAL HAND EVALUATION : TABLE OF CONTENTS

TABLE OF CONTENTS – CONT’D

CHAPTER 5 : Point count : summary and conversion table

Ø Conclusion ……………………………………… Page 83

Ø The optimal point count vs « Trick » counts Page 84
Ø The optimal point count : summary chart Page 90
Ø Converting points into corresponding tricks Page 93
Ø Exercises / Illustrations ……………………….. Page 97
CHAPTER 6 : Other point counts

Ø Other point counts : Overview ………….…... Page 105

CHAPTER 7 : Which point count for opening hands ?

Ø H or HL or HD points ? ……………………… Page 121

CHAPTER 8 : Summary and Conclusion Page 131

EPILOGUE : Optimal pt count implications on Bidding Page 139

INDEX / Complementary notes Page 145

 OPTIMAL HAND EVALUATION

FOREWORD

In his 1968 Bridge Dictionary (« Dictionnaire du Bridge », G. Versini),

the author illustrates perfectly our topic with the following
example of these two hands of the same side :
ª KQxx ª AJxx
© x © xxxx
¨ xxx ¨ xx
§ AQxxx § Kxx
Which he comments on as follows : « One can see that a 4 ª contract
is virtually assured with these two hands, even though they total only
19 honor points and 23 HDS points (Honor, Distribution, trump
Support) – while it is generally considered that 27 HDS points are needed
to bid and make a major-suit game. In this case, it must be acknowledged
that the Goren * point count, universally used today, does not adequately
translate this perfect Fit ».
* Goren point count : Refers to the great American champion Charles
Goren who popularized the addition of distribution points for short suits
(3 2 1 for void, singleton and doubleton) to Milton Work’s 4 3 2 1 honor
point count (for Ace, K, Q, J) to reflect the total value of a hand.
About 50 years after this very pertinent observation, we should
have found a more accurate hand evaluation method that correctly
assesses the combined value of these two hands at 29 total points –
Honors, Length, Distribution and Fit points – rather than only 23
HDS points.
Surprisingly, this is not the case, despite several advances made in
hand evaluation since 1968, many of which have yet to be taught
today or systematically integrated by a majority of champions and
experts – not even by the very pioneers of several of these
advances, essentially to avoid counting in half-points in order to
keep the point count simple…
A significant error of judgment which has unfortunately resulted
in delaying for several decades the correct point count and
therefore an appropriate and accurate hand evaluation.

 OPTIMAL HAND EVALUATION – FOREWORD

However, most experts agree that we can generally rely on the

widely acknowledged accuracy of M. Work’s 4 3 2 1 honor point
count to evaluate balanced hands for a No Trump contract.
But then, how do we account for the 6 NT contract which should
be bid with the hands below totaling only 27 honor points, when
it is generally considered that a minimum of 33 HCP points (High
Card Points) are needed for a 6 NT slam :
ª Axx ª xx
© xx © Axx
¨ Kxx ¨ AQJxx
§ AQxxx § Kxx
Even adding 1 point for the 5 clubs and another for the 5 diamonds
only brings the total up to 29 HL points – far below 33 points !
Here again, we should have found by now a more accurate hand
evaluation method that correctly assesses the combined value of
these two hands at 35 total pts – Honor, Length and Fit points.
And then there is the matter of the value of Tens – generally
ignored, particularly for suit contracts. As an example of this, take
the deal below, from a tournament where not a single pair found
the 4 ª game :
ª A J 10 x x ª Kxx
© KQx © Jx
¨ Qxxx ¨ A J 10 x
§ x § xxxx
The bidding was invariably :
1ª 2ª
Pass
But an optimal point count will show that East’s hand is worth
12 HLD Fit points, not 9 or 10. The bidding could then be :
1ª 2¨
4 § (¨ Fit, § singleton) 4ª
The above is clearly a case where each ten is of significant value –
counting the appropriate value of tens is of critical importance to
reaching the right contracts. Here again, the traditional point
count gives these two hands a total of only 23 HDS points when
they actually total 29 HLDFit points.

 OPTIMAL HAND EVALUATION – FOREWORD

And accurately evaluating the combined value of two hands ought

to start with properly assessing the value of a single hand.
Yet, the 4 3 2 1 honor point count gives the two opening hands
below the same count of 13 H pts when the first hand has 2 ½
winning tricks, with only one sure trick, while the second hand has
more than 3 ½ winning tricks, with three sure tricks :
ª Kxxx ª A Q 10 x
© Kxx © xxx
¨ QJx ¨ AKxx
§ A 10 x § xx
A more appropriate and accurate hand evaluation point count
would give the first hand 12 points and the second 15 points.
Yet, to obtain a very precise, optimal hand evaluation, all that was
needed was to apply corrections identified long ago and some new
ones involving just a few more corrections to make to a point
count already very familiar to all.
That is precisely what this book proposes to do and illustrate.
In the process, this optimal hand evaluation also addresses how to
precisely evaluate misfitted hands – a key issue generally ignored
and not precisely quantified. The following deal illustrates this :
in the Final of a 1981 National selection, 3 teams out of four played
3 NT, down 2, after East’s 2 § response to West’s 1 © opening :
ª xx ª Qxx
© A J 10 x x © Q
¨ Kxxx ¨ QJxx
§ Kx § AQxxx
But East’s hand, far from being worth 13 H/14 HL pts, should be
counted for less than 10 HL misfit pts, which makes a 2 § response
inappropriate. A 1 NT response, instead, would have enabled the
teams to settle in 3 ¨.
This book includes many examples of the disastrous consequences
of the inadequate point count universally used today as well as the
significant benefits of a very accurate optimal point count.
Finally, an Optimal hand evaluation has implications that greatly
impact some bidding principles and practices. These implications
are outlined in this book’s Epilogue.

Patrick Darricades


 OPTIMAL HAND EVALUATION

CHAPTER 1

GOREN’S Point Count : First Corrections

ASSESSING CURRENT HAND EVALUATION PRACTICES

Assessing as accurately as possible the combined value of two
hands of the same side is the very foundation of Bridge bidding
and has therefore been, understandably, the subject of substantial
study leading to various suggested hand evaluation methods from
the very beginning of Contract Bridge, over 90 years ago.
But neither E. Culbertson’s honor trick count (assessing the trick-
taking potential of various honor combinations), nor the 3 2 1 ½
honor point count (for the Ace, King, Queen, Jack) advocated by
the formidable « 4 Aces » American team in the mid-‘30s, was
adopted by players; the former, because it was complex,
inaccurate and found ill-suited to evaluate evenly-distributed
hands for a No Trump contract; the latter, because it involves
counting in half-points (the Jack) and dividing by two the total
number of points in order to estimate the probable number of
tricks that can be expected.
Instead, the count which prevailed, from the mid-‘30s in Great
Britain and the mid-‘40s in the United States, has been the 4 3 2 1
honor point count (for the Ace, K, Q, J) pioneered early on by
Milton Work, later coupled with the Distribution point count for
short suits (3, 2, 1 points for void, singleton, doubleton, 5, 3, 1 pts
for the same short suits in a hand with a 4-card trump fit),
popularized by Charles Goren – a count universally adopted
because of its apparent simplicity and its relative overall accuracy.
But this claimed overall accuracy is neither sufficient nor
satisfactory, and not just for competitive tournament Bridge, and
several elements of the M. Work/C. Goren point count have been
challenged for some time – and justifiably so – by several
champions and experts. In particular, they challenged the value it
attributes to Aces (considered under-valued) and to Queens and
Jacks (considered over-valued, particularly when isolated, i.e.
when not in combination with other honors).
Furthemore, it also fails to adequately account for the appropriate
value of Fits and Misfits between two hands of the same side – to
mention just its most important weaknesses.

1
 GOREN’S POINT COUNT : FIRST CORRECTIONS

Fortunately, from now on, we will no longer have to remain

handicapped by the many, serious inaccuracies of the M. Work/
C. Goren point count as we only need to make a few corrections to
this count to obtain optimal accuracy in hand evaluation – as
illustrated hereafter.

1. FIRST CORRECTIONS TO MAKE TO GOREN’S POINT COUNT

Among the champions and experts having advocated, over the
years, several adjustments to make to the M. Work/C. Goren point
count, the French statistician J-R. Vernes has conducted the most
substantial statistical research identifying key specific adjustments
required (his major contribution in this area not being well known
because his work was not translated into English).
It is his statistical findings that will be used throughout this book
as the most scientifically reliable reference concerning hand
evaluation. Many of the adjustments advocated by M. Bergen,
L. Cohen, and D. Kleinman, to name only three prominent
American experts and champions who published books on the
topic of hand evaluation, correspond to J-R. Vernes’ conclusions in
several areas.
It is within the framework of his scientific research on competitive
bidding – which led him to conceive the Law of Total Tricks,
universally known today since the publication of his findings in
English, in 1992, by the American champion Larry Cohen – that
J-R. Vernes indicated, in 1966, in « Bridge Moderne de la Défense » /
Modern competitive bidding (my translation as the book was never
translated into English), that several corrections to the traditional
point count were in order, as follows :
A) Concerning the 4 3 2 1 honor point count :
– Aces, particularly in suit contracts, have a statistical value closer to
4 ½ points than to 4 points and, on the other hand, one point should be
deducted from a hand without a single Ace.
– 10s have some value, particularly at No Trump contracts, which can
be estimated at ½ point for two 10s.
– In suit contracts, secondary honors, Queens and Jacks, in suits other
than the trump suit, are worth half a point less than the 2 points and
1 point attributed to them by the 4 3 2 1 count.

2
 GOREN’S POINT COUNT : FIRST CORRECTIONS

– Any honor located in a short suit – singleton or doubleton – is worth

less than the 4 3 2 1 count attributed to them and should be downgraded
as follows :
A singleton honor is worth one point less than its normal value – and
this applies to Aces as well as they lose, when singletons, two of their
major attributes : enhancing other honors and acting as defensive
control (hand blockage).
Queens and Jacks, when located in a doubleton, are worth half a point
less than their normal value.
1 point should be deducted for two honors doubleton when one of these
honors is not a Jack (as A J is worth more than A x, and K J more than
K x).

B) Concerning the 3 2 1 Distribution point count :

– Long suits of 6 cards are underrated by one point : they are worth 2 pts
for length rather than 1 point only. And balanced 5 3 3 2 and 6 3 2 2
single-suit hands are worth, respectively, 1 point and 2 points for length
whether played in NT or in a suit contract.
Author’s note : In practice, these points for length should only be
counted when the 5 or 6-card suit is headed by at least Q J or K –
at least 3 honor pts – to avoid over-evaluating the suit length when
finding partner short in that suit.
This seems validated by John Thomas’ statistical analysis which
revealed, in 2001, that 68 % of borderline 3 NT contracts (24 H pts)
succeed when the hands have a 5-card suit headed by at least Q J
but only 10 % do when the 5-card suit has less than 3 H pts.
– 5 4 3 1 hands have an average distribution value of 2 pts but this is
only a theoretical statistical average as a value of 2 pts is never found in
any specific case : this distribution is, in fact, worth either 1 point for NT
contracts or 3 pts in suit contracts.

– Statistics show that the distributional value of a 4 4 3 2 hand is nil;

therefore, 1 distribution point should not be counted for a doubleton.
And, relative to a 4 4 3 2 distribution, 4 3 3 3 hands have a negative
distribution value – of at least half a point.
Author’s note : An important correction to this last comment is in
order : it is one whole point, and not just half a point, which must
be deducted for a 4 3 3 3 distribution.
– A singleton is always a weakness when playing No Trump and at least
1 point must be deducted when proposing a NT contract.

3
 GOREN’S POINT COUNT : FIRST CORRECTIONS

2. CORRECTION TO THE 5 3 1 COUNT FOR DISTRIBUTION-FIT POINTS

Last but not least, concerning distribution points in a hand with a

trump fit (8-card fit minimum) in partner’s suit, J-R. Vernes makes
the following comment in his 1966 book Modern competitive
bidding : « the proper count of distribution points by the hand having a
trump fit is probably the bidding issue treated in the most approximate
fashion. Statistics show that the distributional value of a short suit in a
hand with a trump fit varies depending upon the number of trumps held
by that hand as it is dependant on two variables : on one hand, the number
of cards in the short suit (void, singleton or doubleton) and, on the other
hand, the number of trumps (2, 3, 4 or 5) allowing one or several ruffs.
In practice, the Distribution-Fit point count rule should be the following :
the hand having fewer trumps (trump support) should count its
distribution points as the difference between the number of trumps held
by that hand and the number of cards it holds in its shortest suit ».
Applying this rule translates as follows for each specific case :
– In a hand with 2-card trump support : a doubleton counts for
0 point (2 - 2), a singleton for 1 point (2 - 1), a void for 2 pts (2 - 0).
– In a hand with 3-card trump support : a doubleton counts for
1 point (3 - 2), a singleton for 2 pts (3 - 1), a void for 3 pts (3 - 0).
– In a hand with 4-card trump support : a doubleton counts for
2 pts (4 - 2), a singleton for 3 pts (4 - 1), a void for 4 pts (4 - 0).

Caution : This calculation does not apply to a hand having

5 trump cards as these 5 cards would not constitute trump
support – they would be the long side of the suit, whether Partner
has 4 or 5 cards in that suit. Therefore, that hand should only count
the distribution pts that apply to an opening hand i.e. 2 pts for a
singleton, not the difference between 5 trumps and the short suit.
The following table recaps the above mentioned values :

Number of trumps in Fit support ……. 4 3 2

DISTRIBUTION-FIT POINTS Void .… 4 pts 3 pts 2 pts
Singleton .… 3 pts 2 pts 1 pt
Doubleton .… 2 pts 1 pt 0 pt

As the above table shows, the traditional 5 3 1 distribution point

count for, respectively, void, singleton, doubleton in a hand with
a 4-card trump support is not accurate : a doubleton in a hand with
4-card support is worth 2 pts, not 1. A significant difference, as many
examples in this book will show.
4
 GOREN’S POINT COUNT : FIRST CORRECTIONS

The traditional 5 3 1 distribution point count must be replaced by

the 4 3 2/ 3 2 1/ 2 1 0 count shown above. But there is no need to
memorize it : only count the difference between the number of
trumps and the number of cards in the support hand’s shortest suit.
Note : These Distribution-Fit points must be counted in
addition to the points attributed for long suits (1 point for a 5-card
suit, 2 pts for a 6-card suit, etc.), to the points attributed for fits
(covered in the next section) and to the points attributed for honors
in a fit.
Clearly, these conclusions were significant and most of them are
generally acknowledged by a majority of experts who factor them
in, in actual play, as pluses or minuses when evaluating their hand
– yet without quantifying them as precisely as above.
Actually, we continue to observe, far too often still, that more than
50 years after these conclusions were reached, most of them have
yet to be systematically taught or integrated. Perhaps, some may
argue, for “teaching simplicity” with regard to the everyday player
of intermediate skills ?
But this would hardly be credible in view of the ever-increasing
number of new, complex conventions that spring up everyday and
which are taught with abandon to these same players…
In reality, these undeniable conclusions are, generally, still not
reflected in the comments made by experts and champions in
Bridge books or magazines, and neither are they applied by
champions in actual bidding at the bridge table as numerous
examples in this book will show.
But before forging further ahead, we need to bring greater
precision to the first three conclusions reached by J-R. Vernes,
identified above, with regard to the values of Aces, Queens, Jacks
and tens.

3. THE TRUE VALUE OF ACES, QUEENS AND JACKS.

1. The value of Aces. Each Ace must, in fact, be counted in all
cases 4 ½ pts, not 4 pts, and this applies to all contracts, including
No Trump contracts.
That is a fact which has been largely documented and validated
for over 40 years now, starting with B. Charles’ statistical work
published in 1976, later confirmed, in the ‘80s, by an American
computer analysis. Both studies were conducted over thousands
of hands played in international championships and evaluating
tricks actually made at the table by Aces, Kings, Queens and Jacks.
5
 GOREN’S POINT COUNT : FIRST CORRECTIONS

Their findings were very similar and can be combined as follows :

At NT, the Ace makes, on average, 1.78 * tricks and the King 1.24
tricks. This, whatever the point scale used, gives the Ace a value
that is 44 % greater than that of the King. Relative to a King valued
at 3 pts, an Ace is therefore worth, on average, 4.3 pts at NT.
Author’s note : not only is 4.5 closer to 4.3 than 4 pts is, but the
discrepancy grows with more Aces : as 9 pts for 2 Aces is much closer to
8.6 pts (2 x 4.3) than 8 pts is and 13.5 pts for 3 Aces is much closer to
12.9 pts (3 x 4.3) than 12 pts is.
* The Ace and the King generate more than 1 trick each because of their
“control” feature, whether offensive or defensive. One example is the
typical defensive move, at a NT contract, to hold up the Ace until the
third round of a lead in a 5-card suit to cut communications between
opponents and prevent a subsequent run of that suit, thus avoiding the
loss of two tricks. Another is the orientation of a finesse, with, for
example, K 10 x opposite A J x, to prevent a return from the wrong side
in another suit guarded only by a King, thus avoiding losing more tricks.
Furthermore, the Ace has trick-generating value, beyond its trick-
taking value; for example : A x x x x facing K x will likely generate a
third trick – and possibly a fourth trick, as well (whenever the missing
six cards are distributed 3 – 3).
And the same trick-generating value applies to the King, as well;
for example, while Q J 10 x by itself may not generate any trick, facing
K x it will now produce three tricks.
This totally debunks E. Culbertson’s honor trick count which gives the
Ace credit for only one trick-taking value and the King credit for only
½ trick when by itself.
And in a suit contract, the Ace generates, on average (weighted
average between its trump value and its value in suits other than the
trump suit), 1.34 * tricks and the King 0.88 * tricks. the Ace then has
a value that is 54 % greater than that of the King. Thus, relative to
a King valued at 3 pts, an Ace is therefore worth, on average,
4.6 pts in a suit contract.
* In a suit contract, the value of honors is reduced by the distribution
values provided by short suits allowing ruffs, the eventual establishment
of small cards in long suits, etc.
Author’s note : here, the error of counting only 4 pts per Ace becomes
very serious as 9 pts for 2 Aces is much closer to 9.2 pts than 8 pts is, and
13.5 pts for 3 Aces is much closer to 13.8 pts than 12 pts is.

6
 GOREN’S POINT COUNT : FIRST CORRECTIONS

The conclusion is clear : the Ace is worth, on average, 50 % more

than the King and must therefore be counted 4 ½ pts, not 4 pts,
regardless of the hand distribution or the contract played, NT or
in a suit. And that is what the great American « 4 Aces » team had
understood very early and reflected in their 3 2 1 ½ count.
And for those who would rather avoid counting each Ace 4 ½ pts,
an alternative is to add 1 point for a second Ace and another for a
4th Ace i.e. two Aces = 9 pts, four Aces = 18 pts.
2. The value of Queens and Jacks. The conclusion on the lesser
value of Queens and Jacks for suit contracts has not been
translated in practice and what some experts advocate (add 1 point
to hands having no Queen or Jack, deduct 1 point from hands
having four or more Queens and/or Jacks) has generally not been
adopted – and rightly so as this is without statistical foundation.
In fact, the same statistical research referred to above establishes
the King and the Queen average values as, respectively, 3.15 pts
and 1.75 pts, which means that the King’s value is, on average,
70 % greater than that of the Queen. But, just like 2 pts is a purely
theoretical statistical average for 5 4 3 1 distributions, so are the
values of 1.75 and 0.75 pts for Queens and Jacks which, in practice,
are never found in any specific case !
Indeed, unlike Aces, which essentially keep the same value,
offensive or defensive, whether isolated or not, the value of
Queens and Jacks varies depending upon whether or not they are
accompanied by other honors.
And the fact that Queens and Jacks have a lesser value when
isolated has often been pointed out by experts and champions and
can easily be illustrated :
The honor combination : K Q x x x x will produce two tricks
whenever the Ace in that suit is located before K Q – that’s 50 % of
the time. While the combination : K x x Q x x will very rarely
produce more than one single trick.
The same applies to several other combinations, such as :
AQxx xxx compared to : Axxx Qxx
QJxx xxx compared to : Qxxx Jxx
AQJx xxx compared to : AJxx Qxx
AKJx xxx compared to : AKxx Jxx
A Q 10 x xxx compared to : A 10 x x Qxx
K Q 10 x xxx compared to : K 10 x x Qxx

7
 GOREN’S POINT COUNT : FIRST CORRECTIONS

The difference in value between isolated Queens and Jacks and

accompanied Queens and Jacks can be estimated to be, on average,
about about half a point. The Queen’s value therefore varies from
1.5 to 2 pts while the Jack’s value varies from 0.5 to 1 point.
This variation of half a point translates precisely the well known
“synergy” principle : Touching honors are worth more than
separated honors, and, particularly, the Q J x combination in the
same suit, doubles-up on the upgrade by 1 full point.
As a result, giving the Queen and Jack their average statistical
value – of 1.75 pts and 0.75 pts respectively – would not only be
totally impractical, it would be seriously erroneous and misguided.
Just as is giving them a fixed, constant value of 2 pts and 1 point
which makes the King worth only 50 % more than the Queen.
This has considerable practical consequences which many
examples in this book will illustrate.
The proper count is therefore : Queens and Jacks, are indeed worth
2 points and 1 point, respectively, when accompanied by another
honor, but are only worth 1 ½ and ½ points when isolated – and this
holds true whether playing NT or a suit contract !
And, here again, an alternative to counting in half-points is to
count 3 pts for 2 isolated Queens or 1 point for 2 isolated Jacks.

3. The value of tens. To attribute a value of ½ point for two tens

is another serious error – as the value of each ten varies considerably
depending upon whether it is isolated or accompanies a King, a
Queen or a Jack. This is very important and we will establish, later
on, the “true” value of each ten.

A preliminary summary, on the next page, recaps these initial

corrections to make to the traditional point count.

8
 GOREN’S POINT COUNT : FIRST CORRECTIONS

Preliminary summary of first corrections to GOREN’s point count

HONOR POINTS

Ace : 4 ½ pts K : 3 pts Q accompanied : 2 pts Q isolated : 1 ½ pt

J accompanied : 1 pt J isolated : ½ pt
No Ace : - 1 point (opening hands only)
Singleton Honor : - 1 pt
2 Honors doubleton : - 1 pt Q or J doubleton : - ½ pt
(A K, A Q, K Q, Q J) i.e. : Q x : 1 pt J x : 0 pt
Note : Do not deduct 1 point when 2 honors doubleton include
a J with A or K as A J or K J are worth more than A x or K x.

POINTS FOR LENGTH

5-card suit (with Q J or K minimum) : 1 pt 6-card suit : 2 pts

6-card suit without Q J or K : 1 pt

DISTRIBUTION POINTS AND DISTRIBUTION-FIT POINTS

Void : 3 pts Singleton : 2 pts Doubleton : 1 pt

4 4 3 2 distribution : 0 pt 4 3 3 3 distribution : - 1 pt
A singleton playing NT : - 1 pt
Distribution-Fit points with a trump Fit :

number of trumps : 4 3 2
Distribution-Fit points Void : 4 pts 3 pts 2 pts
Singleton : 3 pts 2 pts 1 pt
Doubleton : 2 pts 1 pt 0 pt

Let’s now see this corrected point count at work, with a few
examples from tournaments as reported by experts.

9
 CORRECTIONS TO GOREN’S POINT COUNT : EXAMPLE DEALS

1986 World championships.

In his 1995 book, « Evaluation of Bridge hands », J-R. Vernes makes
the following comment based on his analysis of deals played in
world championships from 1980 to 1989 :
« One is struck by the very high number of bad contracts reached (20 %),
often due to an inadequate hand evaluation ». He gives the following
example (1986), among many others, as illustration :
ª AJx ª xxx
© KJx © Qxxx
¨ AKxx ¨ Qxx
§ Axx § Jxx
At both tables, the bidding was :
2 NT (20/21 H pts) 3 NT
Down one. East bids 3 NT as he counts his hand for 5 points.
But East’s hand is only worth 2 ½ pts, not 5 : 3 pts for its two
isolated Queens, ½ point for its isolated Jack, minus 1 point for its
4 3 3 3 distribution. And another point could be deducted for
having no Ace and no King. East should have passed on 2 NT.

Topic : « Technique ». Le Bridgeur, 2008.

ª Qx ª Kxx
© Axxx © QJx
¨ AKJ ¨ Qxx
§ xxxx § QJxx
The bidding was : 1§ 2 NT (11/12 H)
3 NT
Comment : « A perfectly normal contract – but, still, a very bad one… ».
In fact, far from having 11 pts, East only has 9 ½ pts. The isolated
¨ Q is only worth one and a half point, not 2, and one point must
be deducted for East’s 4 3 3 3 distribution.
The proper count therefore calls for a 1 NT response, limited to
10 pts, not 2 NT. On which West would then pass as he only has
14 pts (only one point for his doubleton ª Q).

10
 CORRECTIONS TO GOREN’S POINT COUNT : EXAMPLE DEALS

National selection, Teams, 2008.

ª Jxx ª Axx
© Qxx © Kxx
¨ AKxx ¨ Qxx
§ KJx § Qxxx
The bidding was often : 1 ¨ or 1 NT (12/14) 2 NT (11/12)
3 NT
East, counting his hand for 11 pts, proposes to play 3 NT to an
opener having a maximum hand of 14 pts.
But, far from having 11 pts, East only has 9 ½ pts, with two isolated
Queens and a 4 3 3 3 distribution. It is 1 NT (or pass on a weak
1 NT opening) which should be bid, not 2 NT. West further
contributes to overreaching to 3 NT by counting his own hand for
14 pts when it only has 12 ½ pts: isolated Queen and Jack and
4 3 3 3 distribution.
Confirmation that 4 3 3 3 distributions are handicaps, in NT or in
suit contracts, and must always be downgraded by one full point.

Regional tournament, (U.K.), 2010.

ª AKx ª Jxx
© Jxx © Axx
¨ Qxx ¨ Axxx
§ Qxxx § Axx
The bidding was often : 1 NT (12/14 H) 3 NT
A perfectly normal 3 NT bid from East with its 13 pts (4 3 3 3),
facing an opener guaranteeing a minimum of 12 H pts.
But West only has 10 pts ! 4 3 3 3 distribution (- 1) and the isolated
Queens and Jack are worth a total of 3 ½ pts, not 5. The bidding
should have been :
Pass 1 NT (12/14 H)
Pass

European Open, 2011.

ª AQx ª K
© AKxx © J 10 x x
¨ 10 x x x ¨ KJx
§ Ax § xxxxx

11
 CORRECTIONS TO GOREN’S POINT COUNT : EXAMPLE DEALS

In both rooms, West opened 1 NT - which was passed by one team.

But West has 18 ½ pts (3 Aces at 4 ½ pts each), not 17, and therefore
should not open 1 NT. On a 1 ¨ (or a strong Club) opening, finding
the game in hearts should not be difficult :
1¨ 1©
3 © (17/19 HDS) 4©
East has 11 HDFit pts (2 pts for the ª K singleton + 3 pts for the
ª singleton with 4 trumps + 1 point for the Jack in the trump suit)
+ 17 HLDF minimum in the West hand = 28 pts.
One last comment to conclude this segment : how many times
have we read, in Bridge books, references made to “strong” 17 pts
or “weak” 15 pts such as : « Do not open 1 NT, 15/17, the following
two hands » :
ª Qxx ª AKx
© KQx © QJx
¨ QJx ¨ Kx
§ KQxx § Axxxx
« The first one is « a very poor 15 points » (no Ace, lots of Queens and
Jacks), the second is « a very strong 17 points » (lots of Aces and Kings)”.
Unfortunately, such approximations are not accurately quantified
and only serve to perpetuate the perception that only experts are
capable of properly assessing the true value of their hands – when
the reality is that “expert judgment” is not needed to assess strong
or weak hands : an accurate point count will do just that !
The first hand is worth 12 ½ pts (minus 1 point for being 4 3 3 3,
minus 1 point for no Ace, and 1 ½ point for the isolated ª Q), and
the second one is worth 19 pts (9 pts for 2 Aces + 1 for the 5 clubs).
Opening either hand 1 NT, 15/17, won’t even cross your mind…
Actually, even the greatest champions seem to have problems
judging their hands properly – as illustrated by the following
hand, from the final of a 2012 national open, teams, opened 1 NT,
12/14, by the Italian pair Nunes and Fantoni, multiple world
champions :
ª Axx
© xxx
¨ Ax
§ KQJxx

12
 CORRECTIONS TO GOREN’S POINT COUNT : EXAMPLE DEALS

This hand should be counted for 16 HL pts, not 14 H pts.

Wouldn’t you pass on such a weak 1NT opening with the following
hand ? Instead of playing 3 NT :
ª Kxx
© xxx
¨ K 10 x x
§ Axx
These few examples show that to obtain a point count a little more
precise, and more accurate, it would be helpful to start by applying
to the 4 3 2 1 point count the very basic corrections identified as far
back as 1966 and accept to count in half-points – which, unfortu-
nately, neither J-R. Vernes himself nor the majority of experts have
seen fit to adopt and advocate just to keep the point count
as “simple” as possible.
Perhaps as a compassionate gesture toward the average or
intermediate players ?! The same players to whom experts have
tried to teach a multitude of complex conventions intended to
compensate for the appalling lack of precision of most bidding
systems played and advocated.
Ironic – or rather a very regrettable error of judgment which has
only resulted in delaying by several decades the precise evaluation
of Bridge hands. How unfortunate.

13
INTERMEDIATE/ADVANCED

Accurately assess the value

of your combined hands
Accurate hand evaluation is critically important to reaching the
right contract in bridge. Yet, for over 75 years now, hand evaluation
has essentially relied on Milton Work’s 4-3-2-1 honor point count
— a count known to be seriously flawed and inaccurate. Even in
balanced hands aces are under-valued, queens and jacks are over-
valued when isolated, tens are not factored in, and distribution and
fit are not accounted for.
All in all, this method gives a very unsatisfactory, inaccurate
point count that leads, too often, to the wrong contract.

In this book, the author addresses these flaws by applying corrections

to the 4-3-2-1 honor point count and Goren’s distribution point
count, and introduces revolutionary new findings that lead to
much more accurate hand evaluation. Most importantly, this new
Optimal hand evaluation accurately assesses the value of both
hands combined, the true test of hand evaluation.
Over 100 example hands clearly establish that the Work/Goren
point count is simply erroneous and that various other more
modern point counts do not offer a better alternative.
Reading this book will let you be the judge, and applying the
Optimal point count is sure to substantially improve your bidding.

PATRICK DARRICADES (Canada) learned to play bridge as a

teenager, but quickly became more interested in the theory of the
game rather than in playing it. His studies of the statistical work of
J-R. Vernes (which formed the basis for the Law of Total Tricks) led
to his work on hand evaluation, and the present book.

A N H ONO RS eB O O K FRO M MASTER POIN T PR ESS